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Thursday, March 24, 2011

I spent the final two weeks touring Morocco. It was my first time visiting a Muslim country and I found their art, customs and way of life fascinating. We covered most of the country and saw almost every type of landscape imaginable from deserts to beaches.

Sketch done while walking the streets late one night in Casablanca. It was a very eerie night with a full moon.

Bab Bou Jeloud in Fez. This Bab (gate) was packed with people at sundown rushing into the Medina after the call to prayer.

Landscape view done while driving where minarets are seen scattered throughout.

Color landscape view done while driving. Many olive trees.

Woman with hat

Midelt. One of my favorite drawings that really captures rural life.

Ouarzazate City Center Square. As I walked around images just kept piling up on top of each other altering perspective.

Women in City Center Square. Despite the head wraps many women wore western clothes. Chuck Taylor All Stars were very popular sneakers.

Composition from City Center Square

Erg Chebbi is much larger then it appears. I made the mistake of attempting to climb it at sundown. By the time I got to the top it was dark and I had one hell of a time finding my way back to the guide. Getting lost in the desert is not fun.

Gnawamusicians. This was awesome. All of the songs tell a story and for a few songs we were all dancing.

Palm valley and canyon . The rivers were irrigated to sustain small villages all along the canyon which looked similar to the Grand Canyon in AZ just much smaller in scale.

Palm

High Atlas Mountains. Unbelievable sunsets and the most relaxing night of my trip. The hotel was on an orange grove where we could pick at will. The pyramid shaped ceramics in the photo are tops of cookware called Tajines.

Essaouira. This was one of my favorite cities. I could have spent a month doing drawings and exploring.

Hashish Cafe. After being approached numerous times I decided to take a chance. It was a little shady but the experience was well worth it.

Essaouirastreet. I was drawing and talking to some of the local kids when all of a sudden some old man pushed me from behind. He had a large stick and was swinging it at me and the kids yelling at us to get away from his shop. The kids (and I) thought it was hilarious and we kept saying "Crazy Man, Crazy Man." This got him even more angry so we all decided to leave.

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